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Hanging Wallpaper

cookie8
15 years ago

So I bought some wallpaper and realized after I picked a pattern I love and bought and opened that it wasn't pre-pasted. I bought some wallcovering adhesive and the instructions say to prime the wall with Dynamic Wall Prep acrylic primer. Is this really necessary if it's an acrylic paint to begin with? grr. Would you just apply atop the paint that's there? thanks. I'm hoping this is the company's way of selling more of their own product.

Comments (7)

  • handymac
    15 years ago

    Primer is not the same as paint. The paste is designed to adhere to the primer, and may not adhere to the paint. Meaning, if the paste does not stick to the paint, you ruin the paper, and possibly the paint.

    Much less expensive to do it right the first time.

  • cookie8
    Original Author
    15 years ago

    Thanks. Do you think any primer will do then? I hate the thought of buying more primer when I have so many cans of the stuff as it is.

  • PRO
    Christopher Nelson Wallcovering and Painting
    15 years ago

    Do you think any primer will do then?

    Absolutely not!
    You need a primer that is specific to wall paper. If you just use a paint primer or apply paper over regular paint, you then have the home owner's nightmare upon removal time,( IE drywall disaster)Wallpaper primer dries hard so the paste attachés to it instead of soaking through the inferior paint or paint primer and creating a disaster down the road.Upon future removal all you will need to do is clean the paste off,prime and paint or re paper( with out priming again)PS Any place that they sell wall paper will have the proper primer.

  • Shannon01
    15 years ago

    The one lesson I learned while doing a room for my sister was to make sure that you have all the right products for the job. She purchased everthing and I hung all the paper. Later that night the paper all shrank and we discovered it was not prepasted. I hung all the paper thinking it was, so I only used activator. Luckily it was really thick paper and I was able to pull it off. I then got the glue and rehung. Without the correct kind of primer the paper would not have come off at all and she would have had to purchase all new paper.
    My dh's favorite saying is "If you are going to do a job right, you must have the right tools for the job". It is really true.
    Good luck and take your time. Make sure you match up the pattern too.

  • PRO
    Christopher Nelson Wallcovering and Painting
    15 years ago

    I then got the glue and rehung.

    We call it paste.

  • Shannon01
    15 years ago

    Forgive me, I stand corrected. Regardless of the formal term the store should have sold it to my sister. Sharing my experience was only to stress the importance of using the correct products, not telling the poster what specific items would be needed for her/his job. I am sure she/he understood my intentions just fine.

  • wallpaperdiva
    15 years ago

    This is my first time joining this discussion. A good acrylic primer should be used to reduce the porosity of the walls....it will give you more time to hang the wallpaper and will make it easier to strip in the future. Zinsser makes really nice acrylic wallpaper prep products. If the walls are light colored, then I would use a clear acrylic product called Shieldz Clear Wall Size (by Zinsser), and if the walls are dark and I'm covering them with light wallcovering I would use Shieldz Universal Primer/Sealer (also by Zinsser)....it primes, seals, and sizes all in one coat. Lowes used to carry Zinsser products.

    Sandra